How Important Is The Cholesterol?

According to most people cholesterol is a bad thing. Well, this is the result of all the bad publicity that it has gained over the years. If you are one of these people then you will be shocked to know that cholesterol is actually important for our body.

To be more precise, cholesterol isn’t completely bad or completely good. It’s somehow a complex thing and therefore, it’s worth learning about it more.

Cholesterol: It’s Importance

To define it correctly cholesterol is actually a substance that is produced by our liver and is required for our existence. You can also get cholesterol from the food that you consume. Cholesterol is known to serve three main purposes in our body.

They are:

It helps in the production of sex hormones.

It aids in the production of bile in the liver.

It acts as the building block for tissues in the human body.

After going through the above three points, you can clearly understand the importance of cholesterol in our body. All of these functions are important for the human body which is aided by cholesterol. However, the main thing about cholesterol is that too much of it is actually not good for our body.

LDL and HDL

There are actually two types of cholesterol in our body. One is the LDL (low-density lipoprotein) and the HDL (high-density lipoprotein). The LDL is the bad cholesterol while HDL is the good cholesterol. When the level of LDL increases in the body it is considered to be bad as it can lead to the hardening of the arteries. It is also known to cause blood clots in the heart and thus, resulting in a heart attack.

On the other hand, we have the HDL which is considered to be good cholesterol. It helps you to maintain a healthy heart. Also, it aids in the removal of LDL from your arteries. In fact, it does just the opposite of LDL and protects you from a heart attack and stroke.

From the above discussion, it can be said that both the types of cholesterol needs to be in balance and only then your body can function properly. If any of the levels fall or rises beyond the requirement, it can pose threats to your body. But in short, it can be said that in the right levels, cholesterol is actually important for our body.